Nissan makes electric track debut

Nissan makes its official track debut when the ABB FIA Formula E championship stages its preseason test next week.

The Nissan e.dams team will conduct three days of testing at Circuit Ricardo Tormo in Valencia, Spain, with the other 10 teams that will compete in the upcoming season of the all-electric race series.

Nissan is the first Japanese company to enter Formula E and will draw on its experience building electric vehicles for the road to develop the all-new powertrain for its Formula E race car — which features a bespoke electric motor, inverter and gearbox.

“Formula E represents the performance side of Nissan Intelligent Mobility – our vision for changing how cars are powered, driven and integrated into society,” Nissan’s global head of brand and marketing, Roel de Vries, said.

“As the world leader in delivering electric cars to consumers, we’re eager to work with a renowned energy company like Shell to promote zero-emission mobility through this championship.”

Partnering Nissan in Formula E will be Royal Dutch Shell PLC.

Vice president of global retail marketing, Joerg Wienke, said the company was delighted to be partnering with a company like Nissan, which shares its commitment to supporting a lower-carbon transportation system.

“In response to customer demand, we are increasingly investing in our electric vehicle charging network, whether it’s in people’s homes or workplaces, or at Shell stations,” he said.

“This partnership will help us co-engineer products and charging services to improve the driving experience for EV drivers around the world.”

2015-16 Formula E champion Sebastien Buemi and fellow driver Alex Albon will drive for the Nissan e.dams team during next week’s test and the upcoming season, which begins on December 15.

“Nissan is bringing a lot of EV knowledge to the championship, and e.dams has been a strong contender in Formula E from the start,” said Buemi. “Hopefully, we’ll be very successful.”

Season five also marks the debut of a new race format and a new generation of cars for the Formula E series.

“Next week’s test will be the first chance for everyone in Formula E to compare themselves against the competition with their new cars,” said Albon. “It’ll be a whole new experience for everyone.”

Related

Chris Riley has been a journalist for almost 40 years. He has spent half of his career as a writer, editor and production editor in newspapers, the rest of the time driving and writing about cars both in print and online. His love affair with cars began as a teenager with the purchase of an old VW Beetle, followed by another Beetle and a string of other cars on which he has wasted too much time and money. A self-confessed geek, he’s not afraid to ask the hard questions - at the risk of sounding silly.